UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA

ATLANTA DIVISION


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA )
)
v. ) CRIMINAL ACTION
)
APOLLO EDWARD NIDA, ) 1:14-CR-00134-1-CAP
)
Defendant. )
______________________________ )

DEFENDANT APOLLO E. NIDAS MOTION
FOR DOWNWARD DEPARTURE

COMES NOW the defendant, Apollo E. Nida, and hereby moves this Court
for a downward departure from Criminal History Category V to Criminal History
Category IV, pursuant to Section 4A1.3 of the United States Sentencing
Guidelines. For the reasons set forth herein, a criminal history category of V
substantially overstates the seriousness of Mr. Nidas criminal past, thus
warranting a departure from the Guidelines range.
Section 4A1.3 of the Guidelines grants sentencing courts the discretion to
depart where the criminal history calculation overstates the seriousness of a
defendants criminal record. The PSR has calculated a criminal history category of
V, based on a total of 11 criminal history points. Mr. Nida respectfully submits that
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a criminal history category of V overstates the seriousness of his past criminal
conduct.
Criminal History Category V, which applies to defendants who have accrued
10 or more criminal history points, is one of the most serious classifications and is
thus designed to encompass the worst criminal offenders who have lengthy and
substantial histories generally involving drugs, severe violence, or firearms.
Mr. Nida, who is 35, received criminal history points for, inter alia, (1) a
probation revocation when he was 19 years old, PSR 141 (3 points); (2) a
probation revocation when he was 23 years old, PSR 142 (1 point); (3) driving
under the influence when he was 23 years old, PSR 144 (1 point); and (4) giving
a false name to law enforcement and obstruction when he was 23 years old, PSR
145 (1 point).
1
These relatively minor offenses, which occurred well over ten years

1
The PSR erroneously counted the prior sentences imposed on these charges.
According to the PSR, Mr. Nida gave the false name of William Spearman to
police and ran from police when they attempted to place him under arrest. PSR
145. U.S.S.G. 4A1.2(c)(1) provides that sentences for, inter alia, false
information to a police officer and resisting arrest, and offenses similar to them,
by whatever name they are known, are counted only if (A) the sentence was a term
of probation of more than one year or a term of imprisonment of at least thirty
days, or (B) the prior offense was similar to an instant offense. The PSR further
notes that Mr. Nida received 12 months probation on both counts, to be served
concurrently. Because Mr. Nidas offenses are among those excluded under
4A1.2 and he did not receive more than a year of probation, no criminal history
points should have been assessed. See also U.S.S.G. 4A1.2(a) (For purposes of
applying 4A1.1(a), (b), and (c), if prior sentences are counted as a single
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ago, account for 50% of Mr. Nidas total criminal history points (before the
addition of two points under 4A1.1(d)), and have thus artificially inflated Mr.
Nidas criminal history score. See, e.g., United States v. Summers, 893 F.2d 63
(4th Cir. 1990) (upholding U.S.S.G. 4A1.3 departure for defendant with criminal
history that included convictions for grand larcenies, possession of narcotics, a
weapons violation, driving with a suspended license violations, and probation
revocation, where district court found that a sentence below Guidelines range was
appropriate because of [defendants] age and because of some of the aggravation,
or the increase that has been caused by these driving without a license charges as
they relate to the defendants criminal history). Mr. Nidas lengthy but early
small-time criminal history is simply not in the same league as the violent
offenders, drug kingpins and perpetrators of far more serious offenses that
Criminal History Category V was designed to address. United States v. Paulino-
Duarte, 2001 WL 290047 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 26, 2001) (noting that [t]here are only
six criminal history categories, and criminal history category V is just short of the
one reserved for career criminals, and finding that defendant, who had not been

sentence, use the longest sentence of imprisonment if concurrent sentences were
imposed.).
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convicted of a violent crime, [did] not resemble the typical category V defendant
as envisaged by the Sentencing Commission).
A downward departure pursuant to U.S.S.G. 4A1.3 does not ignore Mr.
Nidas prior convictions, but, rather, carries out the Sentencing Commissions
recognition that in some cases a defendants criminal history category over-
represents the seriousness of his criminal history. As the foregoing demonstrates,
Criminal History Category IV would more accurately reflect Mr. Nidas criminal
history. A departure to Criminal History Category IV acknowledges that Mr. Nida
has a criminal history that is more serious than the criminal histories of defendants
typically falling in Criminal History Category III, while at the same time
recognizes that Mr. Nida is not the type of criminal (i.e., one with at least some
violent or drug-related past offenses for which significant periods of incarceration
were imposed) who usually falls within the highest criminal history categories.
For the foregoing reasons, Mr. Nida respectfully requests that the Court
depart downward from the advisory guidelines pursuant to Section 4A1.3 and find
that a criminal history category of V significantly over-represents the seriousness
of his criminal history.
Respectfully submitted this 3rd day of J uly, 2014.

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/s/ Thomas D. Bever
Ga. Bar No. 055874
Emma R. Cecil
Ga. Bar No. 076181
Chilivis, Cochran, Larkins & Bever, LLP
3127 Maple Drive, N.E.
Atlanta, GA 30305
Tel: (404) 233-4171
Fax: (404) 261-2842
tdb@cclblaw.com
















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CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE

I hereby certify, pursuant to L.R. 5.1B and 7.1D of the Northern District of
Georgia, that the foregoing Motion for Downward Departure complies with the font
and point selections approved by the court in L.R. 5.1B. The foregoing pleading was
prepared on a computer using 14-point Times New Roman font.
Prepared this 3rd day of J uly, 2014.

CHILIVIS, COCHRAN, LARKINS & BEVER, LLP

/s/ Thomas D. Bever
Ga. Bar No. 055874
Counsel for Defendant
Apollo E. Nida

3127 Maple Drive, N.E.
Atlanta, GA 30305
Tel: (404) 233-4171
Fax: (404) 261-2842
tdb@cclblaw.com












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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that I have electronically filed the foregoing Motion for
Downward Departure with the Clerk of Court using the CM/ECF system, which will
send electronic notification to the following counsel of record.
This 3rd day of J uly, 2014.

CHILIVIS, COCHRAN, LARKINS & BEVER, LLP

/s/ Thomas D. Bever
Ga. Bar No. 055874
Counsel for Defendant
Apollo E. Nida

3127 Maple Drive, N.E.
Atlanta, GA 30305
Tel: (404) 233-4171
Fax: (404) 261-2842
tdb@cclblaw.com





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